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Psychic Vampirism
Most psychic talents are tools. They can be used for the benefit of others or to harm, depending on the moral character of the psychic. Psychic vampirism is the exception to the rule. Whether the talent shapes the psychic or the psychic shapes the talent is the subject of many a late-night discussion among the gifted, but psychic vampirism tends to bring out the worst in people. In addition to the debilitating effects it has on the target, it produces a euphoria in the psychic, a mental rush that nothing else compares to. The psychic literally drains away emotion from his victims, or in some cases, actual living energies, converting them into energy for himself. The psychic vampire often becomes addicted to the sensation- feeling a rush from the draw and desiring the extra energy, vibrance, and emotion granted. System: Roll: Manipulation + Empathy (see below for difficulty) * Rush: The psychic vampire feeds off strong emotion. The emotions can be positive (joy, happiness, love) or negative (fear, hatred, greed), though the vampire tends to find it easier to generate negative emotions. The vampire rolls Manipulation+Empathy (difficulty 6) to "feed" off the emotions. This provides no concrete benefit to the vampire, though it provides a rush of power. Depending on the Nature of the character, this may allo whim to recover lost Willpower, though it is recommended that the player score at least 3 successes on the roll for that to occur. The psychic must be close to the target (within 10 yards) and able to sense her to feed. The target may feel unsettled by the process, as the effect tends to mute her emotions. However, it does not remove the emotion itself and could not be used, for instance, to calm down an angry person. The vampire can use this ability to monitor the emotions of the subject, though he doesn't have an accurate gauge of the subject's emotions until he starts the drain. ** Sapping the Will: The drain effect sharpens here. The vampire's leeching of life energy saps the will of the target while invigorating his own will. The psychic rolls Manipulation+Empahty (difficulty is the target's current Willpower), and the target rolls a reflexive Willpower roll (difficulty 6). If the psychic succeeds, he drains one point of temporary Willpower from the target and adds it to his own store of temporary Willpower. The extra Willpower can exceed the psychic's normal maximum Willpower (up to 10 total temporary Willpower). While the character has more than normal Willpower, he feels invigorated, akin to a drug high. The excess willpower fades at one point per hour. This talent can be used at a range of up to 10 yards. *** Energy Transference: The vampire's ability to leech life energy now allows him to invigorate himself and to heal minor injuries with stolen life force. This requires the vampire to touch the subject for a turn. The psychic's player then rolls Manipulation+Empathy (difficulty 7). Each success causes a level of damage (maximum two, after soak) to the target and heals a level of damage that the psychic has taken. The psychic can only heal the first two wound levels of damage; beyond that, this power has no effect. If the psychic is undamaged, each damage dealt restores two points of temporary Willpower. The subject *does* get a soak roll, and soaked levels of damage do not benefit the psychic. **** Life Leech: This dangerous talent allows the psychic to leech away vital life energies from the target, healing any damage the psychic may have taken and giving an emotional high without compare. The psychic must maintian physical contact with the target for one turn per damage level absorbed and then roll Manipulation+Empathy (difficulty 8). Each success does one level of damage to the subject. This will heal one level of normal damage or converts one level of aggravated damage into normal damage. If the character is fully healed when he leeches life energy, each damage level absorbed provides the character with 3 points of Willpower. ***** Emotional Vortex: The psychic's ability to absorb energy has progressed ot the point where he can effect multiple targets at once. The psychic must have used one of the lesser powers (or a form of Empathy or Telepathy) on the target once ot make a link to the target's emotional template. After that, the psychic can use the Level One or Level Two powers on the target at will. The range at which the psychic can drain the target depends on the number of successes the player scores on the power roll. (One: Line of Sight; Two: One-block radius, line-of-sight not required; Three: Immediate neighborhood; Four: Anywhere in the city; Five: Anywhere in the country)